Antiradical and Oxidative Stress Release Properties of Trifolium pratense L. extract

Low adaptive capacity and oxidative stress are the factors leading to cellular dysfunction, protein and lipid peroxidation, and the development of diseases. In recent decades, there has been a trend toward the active use of plant-based antioxidants. Trifolium pratense L. is a promising plant for the pharmaceutical and food industry and has anti-radical properties. This work is devoted to studying the antiradical and oxidative stress-released properties of T. pratense in Caenorhabditis elegans under oxidative and temperature stress. The objective of this research was to evaluate the anti-radical properties of the T. pratense extracts and individual BAS (chlorogenic acid, ononin, biochanin A, genistein) and analysis their influences on the oxidative stress of Caenorhabditis elegans in the presence of paraquat. Analysis of the antiradical properties revealed that chlorogenic acid has the maximum ability to neutralize the free radical (35.49µmol). A separate analysis of oxidative stress revealed high ononin activity at concentrations of 10, 50, and 100 µmol at 48 hours of cultivation.  Biochanin A increases survival by 13.1% compared to the control. The use of the extract (500µmol) contributed to an increase in survival on day 1 of incubation. Under conditions of thermal stress, ononin (50 and 200 µmol) has a positive effect on the viability of C. elegans.  The extract and BAS of T. pratense are characterized by high antiradical activity. In addition, the ability to influence the viability of C. elegans was revealed. Therefore, it is worthwhile to further study the biological properties of T. pratense for use in geroprotective therapy

Study of the effect of baicalin from Scutellaria baicalensis on the gastrointestinal tract normoflora and Helicobacter pylori

The antimicrobial properties of baicalin against H. pylori and several probiotic cultures were evaluated. Baicalin was isolated from a dry plant extract obtained by extraction with water at 70 ◦C. For isolation, extraction was carried out with n-butanol and purification on a chromatographic column. The antimicrobial potential was assessed by evaluating changes in the optical density of the bacterial suspension during cultivation; additionally, the disk diffusion method was used. During the study, the baicalin concentrations (0.25, 0.5, and 1 mg/mL) and the pH of the medium in the range of 1.5–8.0 were tested. The test objects were: suspensions of H. pylori, Lactobacillus casei, L. brevis, Bifidobacterium longum, and B. teenis. It was found that the greater the concentration of the substance in the solution, the greater the delay in the growth of the strain zone. Thus, the highest antimicrobial activity against H. pylori was observed at pH 1.5–2.0 and a baicalin concentration of 1.00 mg/mL. In relation to probiotic strains, a stimulating effect of baicalin (1.00 mg/mL) on the growth of L. casei biomass at pH 1.5–2.0 was observed. The results open up the prospects for the use of baicalin and probiotics for the treatment of diseases caused by H. pylori

Chimeric Antibody 14D5 Protects Mice against the Far-Eastern, Siberian, and European Tick-borne Encephalitis Virus

Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), belonging to the Flaviviridae family, is the most significant pathogen transmitted by Ixodes ticks and causing one of the most severe human neuroinfections. In Russia, serum immunoglobulin produced from the donor blood is currently used for post-exposure prophylactic and therapy of tick-borne encephalitis virus. However, it is known that preparations obtained from donated blood have certain disadvantages, and therefore development of novel preparations for post exposure prophylaxis and therapy of tick-borne encephalitis is required. To develop an alternative preparation, which does not include donor blood, a chimeric antibody ch14D5 against glycoprotein E of TBEV was constructed.This study was aimed to investigate protective efficacy of the chimeric antibody ch14D5 against the Far-Eastern, Siberian, and European subtypes of TBEV in in vivo experiments.A peripheral mouse model of tick-borne encephalitis was used in this study: the chimeric antibody ch14D5 was administrated intravenously in mice one day after their intraperitoneal infection with TBEV strains Sofjin, Vasilchenko, and Absettarov. Anti-TBEV serum immunoglobulin was used as a control preparation, which was administered in the same way. Protective efficacy of the chimeric antibodies 14D5 was assessed using the log-rank test. In the study, the presence or absence of antibody-dependent enhancement of infection (ADE) was examined when mice, infected with different subtypes of the TBEV, got the antibody ch14d5.Obtained results demonstrated high efficacy of the ch14D5 antibody in post-exposure prophylaxis of the disease in mice infected with any of the used TBEV strains, as well as the absence of ADE.It was shown that protective efficacy of antibody ch14D5 is higher than that of the anti-TBEV serum immunoglobulin, and antibody ch14D5 could be used for development of a therapeutic preparation for post-exposure prophylaxis

Lightsheet-based flow cytometer for whole blood with the ability for the magnetic retrieval of objects from the blood flow

Detection and extraction of circulating tumor cells and other rare objects in the bloodstream are of great interest for modern diagnostics, but devices that can solve this problem for the whole blood volume of laboratory animals are still rare. Here we have developed SPIM-based lightsheet flow cytometer for the detection of fluorescently-labeled objects in whole blood. The bypass channel between two blood vessels connected with the external flow cell was used to visualize, detect, and magnetically separate fluorescently-labeled objects without hydrodynamic focusing. Carriers for targeted drug delivery were used as model objects to test the device performance. They were injected into the bloodstream of the rat, detected fluorescently, and then captured from the bloodstream by a magnetic separator prior to filtration in organs. Carriers extracted from the whole blood were studied by a number of in vitro methods

Effect of lactobacteria on bioactive peptides and their sequence identification in mature cheese

An in silico study that featured the effect of starter cultures on the bioactivity and other health benefits of peptides in semi-hard cheese is presented in this contribution. Model Caciotta-type cheese samples were obtained in laboratory conditions in two variations. Sample A included starter cultures of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris. Sample B included starter cultures of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris, and a culture of lactobacilli Lacticaseibacillus casei. The in silico method showed that the peptides inhibited angiotensin-converting enzymes (ACE) and ipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-4), as well as possessed antioxidant properties. Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris had a greater effect on the formation of bioactive peptides

Evaluation of Methods for Obtaining Rendered Animal Fats

The increase of functional food production makes the search for new non-traditional raw materials and the selection of methods for their processing relevant. Methods for obtaining biologically active substances of a lipid nature from valuable raw materials extracted from hunting animals (bear, badger, marmot and beaver) are of particular interest. The purpose of this review is to analyze the existing methods of obtaining rendered fat from raw fat and evaluate them. The objects of analysis were the data of scientific articles, patents and studies on the extraction of the lipid fraction from raw materials of animal origin from 2017 to 2021. In the work, various methods for extracting fats were considered. Their systematization, analyze, and description were carried out, indicating the advantages and disadvantages. The considered methods for extracting lipid components can be used in the process of rendering fat from non-traditional raw materials of animal origin. When using the dry rendering method, the heating of adipose tissue is carried out by the conductive method, which leads to oxidative processes and a decrease in the quality of the finished product. The wet rendering method is carried out by interacting raw fat with a heating agent – water or live steam, which, by varying the temperature and duration of exposure, allows to preserve the properties and quality of the product. Wet rendering methods are the most effective. These methods allow to obtain a high-quality finished product, as well as to produce the maximum yield of valuable lipid components of raw materials. To accelerate the technological process with the wet method of exposure, it is possible to use a biocatalytic method. The results of the research can be used in the development of schemes for obtaining biologically active substances of a lipid nature from valuable expensive raw materials extracted from hunting animals

Functional Food Market Analysis: Russian and International Aspects

The modern food market is undergoing a period of rapid development following the changes in marketing technologies and consumer behavior patterns. Nowadays, people pay more attention to the quality and composition of food products, as well as their functional properties. The present article reviews the international and Russian market of functional foods in order to define the consumer demand for new specialized products. The methods included data comparison, grouping, and systematization. The analysis involved Russian and foreign papers published in 2018–2022 and registered in Scopus, eLibrary, Cyberleninka, and the Library of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research. It also covered the National Demography Project, the Healthy Nutrition Project, and the Strategy for Improving the Quality of Food Products through 2030. Consumers’ growing interest in improving their health and immune system proved to be the key factor in the functional food market. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified such trends as the priority of healthy, high-protein, and low-sugar foods. Japan and the USA are the current leaders on this market. Russia supports healthy food policy at the state level. The functional food market is likely to become the most promising and competitive sector of global food economy. Consumer demand for these products is steadily growing: the volume of demand for functional food products will reach 17 trillion rubles by 2027. However, Russian food science needs more research in this area to catalyze import substitution. The Omsk Agrarian University has numerous projects that are meant to increase the competitiveness of the domestic functional food industry

Assessing the Biological Safety of Dairy Products with Residual Antibiotics

Antibiotics have traditionally been used to prevent and treat common diseases in farm animals. However, residual antibiotics in dairy products and meat remain a serious public health problem, which is associated with antibiotic resistance. The research objective was to assess the impact of antibiotic contamination on the quality and safety of dairy products, the microbiological composition of milk, and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The study featured six years of Russian and foreign scientific articles registered in PubMed (National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA), Scopus and ScienceDirect (Elsevier, the Netherlands), Web of Science (Clarivate, USA), and eLibrary.ru. The analysis involved 63 foreign and domestic sources. Residual antibiotics in milk inhibits the vital activity of lactic acid bacteria, which, in its turn, disrupts the technological process of yogurts, cheeses, etc. After such processing as normalization, pasteurization, and homogenization, antibiotics accumulate in fermented dairy products and bind with milk proteins and fats. Antibiotics, in their initial amount, enter yoghurts from dairy raw materials. In cheese production, antibiotics usually pass into the whey, but aminoglycosides, quinolones, and tetracyclines remain in the finished product because they bind with the protein fraction. The problem of biological safety of dairy products is associated with antibiotic resistance developed by human intestinal microbiota. This problem remains understudied, and the number of scientific papers on the matter is limited

The Baikal subtype of tick-borne encephalitis virus is evident of recombination between Siberian and Far-Eastern subtypes.

Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is a flavivirus which causes an acute or sometimes chronic infection that frequently has severe neurological consequences, and is a major public health threat in Eurasia. TBEV is genetically classified into three distinct subtypes; however, at least one group of isolates, the Baikal subtype, also referred to as "886-84-like", challenges this classification. Baikal TBEV is a persistent group which has been repeatedly isolated from ticks and small mammals in the Buryat Republic, Irkutsk and Trans-Baikal regions of Russia for several decades. One case of meningoencephalitis with a lethal outcome caused by this subtype has been described in Mongolia in 2010. While recombination is frequent in Flaviviridae, its role in the evolution of TBEV has not been established. Here, we isolate and sequence four novel Baikal TBEV samples obtained in Eastern Siberia. Using a set of methods for inference of recombination events, including a newly developed phylogenetic method allowing for formal statistical testing for such events in the past, we find robust support for a difference in phylogenetic histories between genomic regions, indicating recombination at origin of the Baikal TBEV. This finding extends our understanding of the role of recombination in the evolution of this human pathogen

A phytochemical study of the clover growing in Kuzbass

In addition to studying bioactive organic compounds in plants, it is increasingly important to determine the biological role of elements in plants growing in environmentally unfavorable areas. One of such regions in Russia is Kuzbass with its intensively developing chemical, metallurgical, and coal mining sectors. In this study, we assessed the plant materials of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), alsike clover (Trifolium hybridum L.), and white clover (Trifolium repens L.) collected from their natural populations in Kuzbass. The qualitative and quantitative composition of heavy metals in the clover samples was determined voltammetrically. The contents of molybdenum and phosphorus were measured by the photocolorimetric method. Total nitrogen and protein were determined by the Kjeldahl method. Nickel, cobalt, and chromium were quantified by spectrophotometry. We analyzed the plant materials of the clover samples for heavy metals and found that the content of lead was the least in red clover and the highest in alsike clover. Copper varied in a larger range and was minimal in red clover compared to that in alsike and white clover. Zinc was found at higher concentrations of in white and red clover compared to that in alsike clover. The levels of cadmium exceeded the maximum permissible concentrations in all the clover samples. We also revealed that the clover samples contained different amounts of various amino acids, including arginine, valine, lysine, glycine, aspartic acid, and alanine. The plant materials of the clover species growing in Kuzbass can be used to improve the fertility of soil and nitrogen regime. However, the clover species should not be used in bulk feed for farm animals because of high concentrations of cadmium